by Nikki Wagler, owner of Coles & Keys Optical
The importance of staying true to you is finding your inner joy and embracing it!
It was The Great Gonzo who once said:
“Tonight, ladies and gentlemen, I will eat a rubber tire to the music of The Flight Of The Bumblebee. Music, Maestro”.
No hesitation, no restriction for fear of critique, just pure passion and the courage of conviction. Gonzo is a personal hero of mine because he taught me that you can be serious about having fun. And vice versa.
One does not negate the other and yet people tell me all the time that it’s not that simple. But for me, it is. I actively search for the things in my days that spark little joys in my heart and embrace them fully. I choose to seriously have fun.
I get stopped daily by people who tell me “Oh I love your ______ ! But you can pull it off,” whether it be my hair or glasses, tattoos or my clothes. “I could never wear that”. And my rebuttal is always “Well, why not?” and traditional societal restraints are often the reason. Age, gender, profession.
I’m a 36 year old wife, mother and co-owner of an optical boutique. For over a decade, I have helped my clients find the best eyewear for their prescriptions and their personalities, it is one of my greatest passions. And I have watched so many people light up instantly when putting on the perfect frame only to hand it back to me deflated after receiving someone else’s opinion. It’s a difficult thing to watch, like a kid dropping their ice cream cone.
Age is just a number, everyone can wear purple and being professional only means that you are dedicated to your profession. One of my favourite humans (featured in this image) runs an incredible candy store and she’s the perfect example! She’s great with business and finance AND is fun loving, has a passion for candy and the colour pink. You. Can. Do. Both!
Strip away the titles and the expectations and really look for the things that bring you joy, without restraint, and choose to embrace them. Take a moment to think about why you like the colours that you do or the songs that you listen to. Are they just what’s accessible and surrounding you or are they actually something that spark joy? And if they’re not joyful, dig deeper and find what makes your heart truly sing.
And as soon as you find it, you’ll know. For me, it was glasses and anything Jim Henson. So, this is me stepping out in front of the crowd and saying:
“Tonight, ladies and gentlemen, I’m doing something for my joy. I’m going to seriously have fun and now that you’ve seen someone else do it, maybe you’ll try it too!”
Once more: The importance of staying true to you is finding your inner joy and embracing it.
Nikki Wagler is the co-owner and the “Key’s” of Coles & Keys Optical on York St. here in Stratford. A graduate of York University, she walked into the world hoping for a career in music but after taking a receptionist role at an optometry clinic, Nikki quickly found her passion for great eyewear. She has been styling amazing humans in badass, independently designed frames for over a decade. Learning and sharing the stories of the humans she meets is one of her greatest joys, where she revels in bonding over obscure and ridiculous pop culture references. Especially Nicolas Cage.
